I’m going to start running free NYC beer games for anyone who’s interested in playing along.

Mikkeller, the gypsy brewery that brews the novelty beer 1000 IBUs (which I just reviewed, thank you very much), makes an incredible line of single hopped beers, each one utilizing a different hop’s taste. While Mikkeller’s can be expensive, they’re almost always worth it. The single-hop series is another shining example in their long line of success. As a prize to whoever can find the following Mikkeller’s beer, I offer one bottle of single hop IPA (the hop is your choice). Obviously, you have to be 21 to play. You can pick up your beer at the next Two Girls, One Pint event if you win.

GAME DETAILS ARE AS FOLLOWS:

Objective:

Find a Bottle or Draft of Mikkeller’s Not Just Another Wit, and take a picture of yourself with the beer and a newspaper.

You do not have to buy the beer, just find it. Also send in the location where you found it. It’s literally that simple.

I’ve been writing about too many imperial IPAs. I may have said this before. I’m a hop-head. I’ve confessed. Now indulge me. I was out one night in late October and I stumbled upon this novelty. I thought to myself, “1000 IBUs? How can anything be that bitter?” Well, I have the answer…it can’t. Like many triple IPAs, there’s a point of hop concentration where the tongue can’t absorb any more resin. The beer can contain as many hops as the brewer wants to put in, but it doesn’t really matter after about 100 IBUs (please write in if you feel differently). However, I do find that occasionally there are wonderful flavors in these IPAs from the beta resins at these high levels. But let’s get back to the story. I wanted this beer. I had to at least TRY it, even though it was really expensive (I’ll get back to that later). Mikkeller, a small gypsy brewery, has become one of the most renowned breweries in Europe for a reason, and they specialize in oddities like this. I’m a huge IPA fan (not to overstate the obvious), and this was one novelty I couldn’t avoid. Turns out, this beer is surprisingly drinkable. It’s light, hoppy, and actually, very good. It pours a golden orange, with a medium head. My friend told me it would annihilate my taste buds, but it didn’t. Sure, you can taste big citrus and piney hops, but it levels out and turns into a delectable treat, offering a smooth golden after taste. This isn’t the best imperial IPA of all time, but with what Mikkeller did to this crazy experiment, it amazes me to say it might be in the top 5. With Mikkeller’s odd history of unique brews, maybe I shouldn’t have been surprised. HOWEVER…and that’s a big however…the fantasy ends there. The beer costs between thirteen and sixteen dollars for a 12 oz. That’s absurd. I don’t care if there’s a little hop dragon breathing liquid resin into my beer, it isn’t worth that price. 1000 IBUs nearly fails in price, but redeems itself for being a singularity…an anomaly…. The Great White Buffalo. And for that, it might be worth trying, at any price.

In Conclusion: A great novelty beer. If you have the money and the idea entices you, I’d say try it, but know that it’s going to be a one and off because of the price tag.

Food Pairing: Spicy and savory foods with cream. Falafel and Fajitas would be great.

“This is grain, which any fool can eat, but for which the Lord intended a more divine means of consumption…Beer.”

Don De Dieu was “commissioned by the King of France to pursue, by the way of the great Canadian waterway, the exploration of this vast and inhospitable land called America”, or says Unibroue. With this beer, Unibroue could easily continue to explore and expand their share of the North American beer market. While La Fin Du Monde is probably their best known ale, Unibroue’s Don De Dieu and Trois Pistoles come in as close seconds. Unibroue have proven themselves consistent beyond belief, and this beer provides another Canadian treat for Belgian fans across America. It pours a golden pale amber. Despite being darker then you might expect for a pale ale, the creamy yeasts dominate the darker flavors. It’s slightly acidic, but the finish is so clean you won’t remember it. A very drinkable strong ale, thought you might want to take it slow with this one, because after two or three you’ll be gone. Four packs are 10 to 15 dollars. That’s not bad considering the outstanding quality and consistency of the brew. Unibroue is definitely one of the best breweries in North America, and after you have a Don De Dieu, I think you’ll agee.

In Conclusion: A great beer for a decent price, for all occasions when a Belgian Strong Ale is appropriate. A lighter, hoppier alternative to heavier creamier Dark Ales, Tripels, and Quads.

Food Pairing: All kinds of savory poultry. Quail, Duck, and Roasted Chicken. A great beer for large holiday feasts with friends and family.

The title is kind of a lie. I’ve brewed before, but I’ve never created my own recipe or used my own equipment, so this was a first…of sorts. Whatever experience I had, it didn’t feel like this was going to be easy. I kept telling myself it would be ok. My friend, Hunter, came over to help me brew. He had done a few Homebrews himself and I thought having him there would help me stay calm. Plus, I had Charlie Papazian in the back of my head whispering , “Relax, have a Homebrew”. As it turns out, despite my apprehensions, the whole process was pretty painless. Instead of homebrew (because I didn’t have any), we bought a six pack of Sam Adams Latitude 48. I wanted to make a strong pale wheat ale. I’ll tell you from the beginning, I ended up with a pale ale, but it wasn’t strong or carbonated enough. I think we put too much water into the batch. At the end of this article, maybe you can tell me what what you think….

Around 3pm, we started brewing. First we sanitized everything using Star Sans.

Then we began by steeping a 1/3 lb of Victory grains for 30 minutes in 1 ½ gallons of water. This gave us the doughy base I wanted.

We let that cool, filtered out the grains, and put it back in the pot. Then we added our malts, 5 lbs of Briess Bavarian Wheat and brought to a boil for 75 minutes.

We tried a method of continuous hopping (check previous article) with pellets. We added an ounce of warrior hops right off the bat, for the bitter (Warrior’s high in alpha resins).

We waited about twenty minutes, and then continuously added another ounce of Warrior over the next 20 minutes in increments of an eighth an ounce every 2 ½ min. We continued the flavoring with an ounce of New Zealand Motueka and an ounce of Mt. Hood from 40-60 minutes in ¼ ounce increments (on the same schedule). These hops have relatively low alpha but high beta resins, and they smell and taste wonderful.

We added the same hops for aroma. Specifically, we added an ounce of New Zealand from 60-68, and an ounce of Mt. Hood from 68-75. To be honest, at this point, we got a little lazy and just started dumping hops. At 75 minutes we took our brew off. We added 3 gallons (I think?) of clean cold water to a carboy and then poured our mixture in via a funnel, and filtered out the hop pellets (for no reason).

We waited till it cooled down, then I took a measurement. The specific gravity was 1.027 at 80 degrees F, so the real specific gravity was about 1.0032 (way lower than I wanted). I waited till the temp got down to about 76, then added a tube of California Ale yeast (which was warmed up and shaken).

I should mention here that all of our ingredients came from the Whole Foods Beer Store on 2nd ave, the F, M stop in NYC. After brewing, I let my wort age in a dark corner of the room.

After a few days, I had to add a tube to catch the run off because it ended up being much more than I expected (I think I may have loss some carbonation here).

After 2 ½ weeks, I decided to bottle. I tasted at this point, and while it was very good, there wasn’t much carbonation. I added priming sugar, and then bottled the beer.

The specific gravity at the end was 1.004 spg at 75 degrees F. So the beer was very weak at about 2.8 or 3 percent. That being said, it tastes better than most beers that I buy, and it was a lot cheaper. I spent about 25-30 dollars on ingredients, and I was able to brew 3 cases of good beer. I’m going to brew a strong English ale next, and use more malt and two yeasts. If you have any other ideas about how to brew a better beer, let me know. It was exciting to see something I made grow and change over the weeks, and to be able to savor my creation. I hope that some of you who read this will consider doing the same. Oh, and get a bottle dryer. Get a bottle dryer.

“Beer, the cause of, and solution to all of life’s problems.”
– Homer Simpson

First off, if you don’t like Scotch style ales, you won’t like this. And if you haven’t tried a Founders before, this isn’t a good place to start. This beer is pretty readily available now, and I don’t think it really represents the style or Founder’s. It’s not a terrible beer, it just has some odd notes in the bitterness which usually balance out in a traditional Scotch ale. There are some wonderful citrus hops, especially orange, and spice notes of chesnut and hazelnut. The beer pours a little cloudy, a deep red with brown amber edges. It’s got a smooth start, and a bitter finish, but it’s missing something in the middle. It’s missing real passion. One friend, who had never had a Scotch ale before, said, “This beer tastes like blood.” I’m not sure what she meant by that, but I don’t think it was good. BUT, if you love Scotch ales, this is a fanastic deal for about 12 or 13 dollars a six pack. It’s a great beer for those who want a bitter, hoppy, strong Scotch that’s drinkable and affordable. I’m just not that into this.

Conclusion: Great price, but only for those who love Scotch ales. I don’t think this is Founder’s best work. It needs to be more balanced.

Pours a hazy golden orange, with a light amber tint, like a sunset in the forest. The aromas are lemon, orange peel, and peach. I expected strong hops, but the taste is surprisingly smooth, making this an easily drinkable IPA. It’s also a pretty good price, at ten dollars for a four pack of 12 ounces. I’d put it on par with Dogfish Head 90 minute, as a solid example of the American IPA. If you like Sixpoint’s Bengali Tiger, this is the next step up. I have to say though, that in some ways, the hops are stronger in Bengali. Don’t be fooled though, this is still an imperial IPA, just without the bitter punch. I love Sixpoint for maintaining the complexity and strength of the best. This is the perfect IPA for people looking for complex hop taste, without the extreme bitterness associated with imperials. The smooth creamy flavor takes over after the complex bitterness, and on multiple sips, the hops are just a joyous after thought. I think Sixpoint should make more doubles out of their normal beers (especially a double wit based on the Crisp).

In Conclusion: For people who are looking for a complex IPA, without the extreme bitterness. Wonderful light lemon notes, very drinkable.

If you couldn’t make the September 22nd Brewery Bus Tour, we’re doing another one on November 17. We’re heading to all the same places (Weyerbacher, Fegley’s, and Riverhorse), so get your tickets now before they sell out. Just go to http://www.twogirlsonepint.com, and click on the brewery bus tour flyer. Also, keep an eye out for more information about bus tours coming in December and January. It’s going to be a blast!

“God made yeast, as well as dough, and he loves fermentation just as dearly as he loves vegetation.”